


Doesn’t Hold A Candle

by InkSplodge



Series: Two Can Play That Game [7]
Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse)
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Happy Birthday VHS, M/M, Puzzles, Resident Evil 7, Watching, re7
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-12
Updated: 2017-03-12
Packaged: 2018-10-03 01:34:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10232732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InkSplodge/pseuds/InkSplodge
Summary: Lucas had brought himself some time to make up his mind, but with one game left means more conflictions. Now is the opportunity to kill or save Clancy - and Lucas is telling himself two very different things.Partner fic with "The Game Is Not Worth The Candle".doesn't hold a candleIs not nearly as good or desirable as someone or something else.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So sorry this has taken a few days to write; had lots of work but it's here! Essentially the whole Happy Birthday VHS tape again with the aftermath of 21 DLC. At least one more fic after this!
> 
> Set during the Happy Birthday VHS; contains puzzle spoilers for this VHS tape, as well as bits of dialogue.
> 
> Song: "Weird Around You" by Eerie Summer  
> Essentially Lucas around Clancy.

The room was silent even as Lucas walked into the gambling den.

After any game, he’d let the winner simmer as he basked in the glory. However, this time he had to take time out; organising his thoughts and his plan.

His plan was now to let Clancy play the last game without any interruptions or control from him. It was the best compromise – Clancy had to die in this next game, although his heart wanted anything but that. But he had to go with his head, even if it hurt and made him feel confused.

Flipping the room’s manual light switch on, neither of the two men moved. Hoffman’s head was on the table and didn’t react – in front of him was Clancy, head forward against his chest.

Clancy’s shoulders arched over as though he had given up. But with no reaction, he was likely asleep. Fingers ached to put his hand on his shoulders, to have that physical connection again.

But it would wake him up, and he knew it wouldn’t be able to go through with the next game.

However, as he stood behind him, Lucas knew he didn’t want Clancy to know he’d knocked him unconscious again, not after bringing him here. As well, it was better he didn’t know where Hoffman was.

Taking the knife from his back pocket, Lucas aimed the knife’s handle before hitting it around Clancy’s head for the second time. Clancy only slumped forward against the table. With Lucas doing it so many times he knew where to and where not to hit, even on Clancy’s concealed head. He just hoped it didn’t affect that Clancy had been asleep already.

In front Hoffman made a noise, before fidgeting and resting back down. Thankfully he was still asleep.

Lucas took to freeing Clancy’s hand from the contraption – earlier at the computer he had reset the razors so they were lying down.

It didn’t take long, but then Clancy was lifeless. Head on the table, slumped in the chair, his arms dangled next to him. Lucas placed Clancy’s head back up, watching as his Adam’s Apple showed.

Grabbling the back of the chair, Lucas shifted it so Clancy was now facing him.

Crouching down, he took the zip tie from his pocket. Gently Lucas took Clancy’s left hand and held it in his own. Clancy’s wrist was red and sore, from both contraptions, now and earlier. Lucas let his finger run across the red lines that cut across pulse point and fingers.

Clancy still didn’t wake.

Grabbing Clancy’s other hand, Lucas held them together, before Clancy’s hand fell heavily in his own lap.

Focus back onto the chair, Lucas unlocked the stock that held Clancy’s feet to the chair. Most of the items in the room were old torture methods that he had spruced up, so were easy enough to use.

Standing back up, Lucas looked over the other’s body, eyes on the cap for another moment.

Bridal carry would work like before, but after a while it had hurt his back especially with the long walk ahead, and for the fact Lucas needed his hands and had no help. It wasn’t the best hold.

Lucas tilted his body to the side and into Clancy, in a way that he could shift the other into a fireman’s carry. It didn’t take too long, the other almost feeling lighter than last time. With Clancy across his shoulders, Lucas put his arm through the hole the joined arms created. His neck ached at how Clancy’s body was pushing against it but he didn’t mind. Lucas’s left hand came up, unsure on how to hold Clancy’s lower body to stop him from falling. It was too close for comfort but necessary.

First he placed his arm in between Clancy’s leg, arm hooked around the man’s left leg. However, with it around his knee, it was too loose and Clancy moved from his positioned. Hand came up to hold against the fanny pack Clancy was wearing. Now it was too taut and the weight of the other was making Lucas fall forward.

Taking a breath, he placed his hand high up the back of Clancy’s thigh, at the right height to keep him secure.

With the two of them set, Lucas strode out the room, but not before turning off the lights and closing the door.

The journey felt longer, and made his muscles ache as he climbed up and down stairs. However, Lucas only worry was to not let Clancy fall. Not to let him go-

“Lucas?”

Lucas shifted his head, to try and see the other’s face. Unfortunately, Clancy’s head was down. Still Lucas felt a smile on his face.

“Nearly there, Clancy, my-” for a moment Lucas worried if to use the word ‘friend’. It was just a word, like guy or buddy, but it niggled in the back of his mind. “-friend.” 

Clancy didn’t respond and it made his heart hurt. Maybe he was rejecting him. Maybe it was best to just let him go through the game then.

It was minutes until Lucas saw the familiar door of the game. Stopping in front, he untangled his arm from Clancy’s before pressing in the code.

**5683.**

He would change it later.

Opening the door, Lucas made sure to side-step in like before, making sure Clancy didn’t get hurt in the process.

Standing in the room, Lucas knelt down, ready to put Clancy down.

His hands moved to make sure he was settling Clancy down correctly; one arm around Clancy’s shoulder and another holding his hand; trying to ignore the fact Clancy was squeezing back.

Their hands let go, Clancy now lying on his back with his eyes closed. Standing over him, Lucas was slightly worried why the other wasn’t reacting. He watched as Clancy opened one eye – finally.

“I actually envy you,” Lucas found himself saying, the performance kicking in although feeling happy that he did have Clancy. Thoughts conflicted on it for a moment, unsure if he was going to let Clancy go through all stages of the game, or at all.  

There wasn’t much of a response, till Clancy moaned.

“Lucas.”

His heart halted for a moment before beating faster; Lucas moved from the situation as he stood straight, repeating to himself he should perform.

“This joy? Why, you can’t fake this. It’s taken me weeks to finish this, and it is finally ready,” Crouching back down, Lucas pulled his knife out again, ready to undo the zip tie. “And it’s all for you.”

Although on doing so, Clancy made no movement. Instead, Lucas grabbed Clancy’s right wrist to pull him up into a seated positioned, knife cutting through the restraints.

Clancy didn’t react again. Eyes just on him. Thoughts wondered to whether the other was alright; the last few hours all he could do was scream and shout, and now he was silent. Did knocking him out when he was asleep a bad idea?

Lucas remembered his mom used to place her hand on his forehead when she thought he was ill. Hand coming forward, Lucas placed the back of his hand again Clancy’s head, although had no idea what he was looking for. Instead, he could only notice how the other’s skin burned, mixing with his own cold hands. Although, after a moment, he felt the pressure of Clancy pressing his forehead closer. That seemed like a good reaction.

Taking his hand back, Lucas crouched back up, making his way back to the locked door. Fingers through the grill, he closed it shut as the keypad restarted.

“This is going to be fun. Just you wait.”

Lucas kept his hand on the grill. Moments passed as Clancy didn’t move. Thoughts screamed for him to check on the other, but then Clancy was moving; somewhat clumsy movements before Clancy was standing up and looking at him. Lucas felt himself smiling.

“See you in a minute.”

Jogging, Lucas made his way back through the doorway. The way to the control room was a bit longer this way, but he kept at a quick speed as he climbed up and back down the stairs. On reaching the room, the main camera showed Clancy by the kitchen, candle in hand, making his way to the room. Thankfully he hadn’t missed any of the action.

On cue the candle extinguished, before Lucas flicked the lights on and Clancy’s yelp came through the headphones on a low setting, but louder through the wall.

Hand came to flip on the microphone, Lucas speaking into it. “Sorry to have scared you there, buddy.”

“I’m drenched,” Clancy simply moaned, as Lucas placed his headset on.

Desperately Lucas wanted to apologise; or just something witty, something clever and interesting. But he had made up his mind before and was the whole reason for this.

Clancy was going to die playing the game.

That was that.

Even thinking about it made his fingers twitch, wanting to just plummet the room into darkness and take Clancy away from it all.

Instead Lucas went for his scripted performance.

“I’m calling the game, “I’d really like to make it out of this room alive and not die a horrible painful death”.”

Eyes watched as Clancy moved, looking to the centrepiece of the whole room, just about noticing the other’s smile as his hand concealed his face for a moment.

“How about simply, ‘Happy Birthday’?” Came through the speakers.

Enjoy yourself, came to Lucas’s mind.

“Good one, might write that down.”

Breath hitched as Clancy removed his cap, proceeding to comb down his hair.

Fuck. Lucas caught his thoughts again, at how pretty the other was. Distractions.

“All you have to do take the candle, light it, and put it on the cake,” he reminded himself to not interact. Or could he? Maybe a little, just a little interaction.

On the screens, Clancy moved over to the wine barrel, hands coming to turn the key. Although yelped as the wine spilled over his shoes.

“Just wine, buddy,” Lucas found himself saying, until Clancy was staring down the screen’s lens.

Why did he have to look at him like that?

“It’s drinkable,” Lucas added.

Immediately Clancy crouched, drinking what he could from the overflowing wine. It was endearing, as Lucas had to scold himself.

Eyes kept on the screens, watching at all of Clancy’s movement. Next he was onto the box and making a laugh.

“Gift box?”

“You’re a smart one.” Lucas found out he said it out loud before it was too late. The other didn’t respond and instead continued exploring the area.

The toilet was the next puzzle, and Clancy was flushing it. The camera above the toilet showed Clancy gagging.

“Fucking disgusting… This is gross…” Came through.

“Don’t worry about it, Clancy, just good old fresh water.” Lucas had to think about why he was reassuring the other, instead of just snickering.

Clancy’s hand disappeared before pulling out the telescope, proceeding to place it into his fanny pack for storage.

Lucas watched every moment, eyes flicking between screens for the best view. It was easier to stay silent, to just watch.

Soon Clancy turned the stove on, lighting the candle and immediately reaching for the door. In moments, the rope was burning and Clancy yelped on opening the door as a balloon filtered out.

Lucas found himself talking, unsure if it was for his benefit, or Clancy’s, “Careful not to pop all the balloons, there’s nothing in them - took me ages to fill.”

The camera caught the corners of Clancy’s mouth rising, before trying to conceal it was his hand. Heart beating, Lucas made a laugh as he looked.

Fuck, he looked so good smiling.

Continuing to watch, Clancy blew out the flame before kicking through the balloons, reaching the door’s code.

The first word was mumbled, but then Clancy was speaking louder, to talk to Lucas. “Is the answer birth?”

“No,” Lucas said, coming closed to the screen to where Clancy was crouched.

“Is it happy Lucas?”

It was unexpected but Lucas found himself chuckling, smiling. What was this cameraman doing to him? Why was he being so pathetic? Such a… Loser… “No – something close to that though.”

The other was silent once more, but quickly found the yellow balloon and making his way back. Why was he walking so fast, why had he solved it so quickly, why was he-

 “No!” Lucas found himself screaming as Clancy nearly fitted the balloon over the air pump. Now it just dropped to the floor.

“Did I do something wrong?” The innocence made Lucas’s gut twist.

“No – no.” His response only made Clancy look down the camera’s lens again, looking directly at him.

Why didn’t he let him do it?

Why did he care?

Why did he lov-

“Just… When you place it, come around the wall. Don’t think I’ve got it right.”  It was easy enough excuse, and the quill could still be used.

Eyes followed as Clancy replaced it once more. Almost casually, he walked to the wall, making Lucas want to scream for him to run. The camera made the movement blurred, but the loud pop sounded meaning the balloon had burst, freeing the quill. Now Clancy was moving, looking around the room. Heat creeped up Lucas’s neck, hoping the other hadn’t seen the nails he had put in with the quill. It was just easier for him to know what he was looking for.

“Ya need to look for a quill,” Lucas said as Clancy was looking to the camera once more. A part of Lucas wanted the other to stop it, the other half didn’t want him to stop at all.

“A quill?”

“Yeah,” Lucas added, “those old fancy ones with a blue feather on the top, real nice, silver too.”

Clancy crouched as he walked, eyes on the floor, till he was reaching an arm through the water to reach it, shuddering, before standing back up.

Standing there, the suspense was killing Lucas, wanting to interact with the other again.

“Where do you want to go now, Clancy?”

Watching once more, Clancy emptied the contents of the fanny pack onto the kitchen counter before replacing the items. He called out once more, “The telescope’s dirty, so I have to clean-”

“Clean it, well done.” He was getting it quicker than some of the last idiots.

Clancy wasn’t an idiot.

“Then point it at somethin’. It’s not a proper telescope for seeing far distance, get it?”

Arm under the water pipes once more, Clancy held the telescope under, eyes on the mounted television screens. Then he was taking his hand back, looking through. His demeanour changed, almost leaning forward.

“You’ve seen it, haven’t you?”

“Yeah - something, something, and a baby.”

He really was getting this, it was exciting to watch. “Yep, and where are there-”

Lucas cut off as Clancy was already walking and clutching at the gift boxes code. As the lock fell away, Clancy opened the box, switching the lock and telescope for the strawman.

Clancy seemed to be studying it, before looking to the cameras again, “You made this?”

Only blinking at the image of Clancy, a cold sensation ran up Lucas’s torso. “Yeah.”

A smile was visible once more, and Lucas couldn’t speak. Instead, he watched the other move back through to the stove. Fire burning, Clancy was looking between the strawman and fire, almost reluctant to do the inevitable.

The strawman went up in flames.

“So, my inventory consists of a candle, for the cake.”

Lucas only found he could hum.

“A quill, a clockwork mechanism, and a dummy finger, which goes to-” Clancy doesn’t even finish as he’s walking to the clown. Four more steps to go.

Standing for a moment, Clancy looked over the clown before placing each item – the finger, the quill, and lastly the key. A click sounds as it secured. Lucas’s gut turned at the sound, the inevitable about to happen.

However, Clancy stood back for a moment, looking over the mechanical clown once more. Relief filtered through Lucas. If the other waited he had more time to think it through-

Clancy’s hand was coming forward.

“No!”

Standing up from the chair, Lucas was yelling down the microphone once more.

The other only seemed irritated. “What, Lucas?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck. What was he doing?

“No need.”

Waiting, watching, Lucas sat back down and let his head fall forward onto the desk. What was he supposed to do now?

A click turned his attention back to the screens, Clancy’s hand now on the key, having turned it a half-turn.

Fuck!

“Loser!”

Gulping, Lucas realising how it would sound to the other. Clancy took a step back. The sensation of not being able to breath overtook Lucas as his heart hurt, beating faster.

“For the door?”

It felt like a release that Clancy had realised, making Lucas feel as though he could breathe again; until Clancy was twisting to look at him once more.

Excuse, excuses-

“Don’t think the clown’s working, had to fiddle with it before…”

It seemed Clancy didn’t even care, no marching through the game and to the locked room. He didn’t respond, only urgent in his steps, twisting the letters until the lock came off in his hand.

Hurriedly he was grabbing the valve, the one before last step.

Lucas felt his heart quickening, stomach lurching, and skin prickling in a way that made him feel sick. Not even being able to speak.

Silent and swiftly, Clancy had made his way to the room and turning the water supply off.

Then, for the last time, was making his was to the stove. The candle’s wick hovered over the stove as it burnt to life.

Clancy’s movements seemed to last forever, as though Clancy was taking in the satisfaction of a job well done. Steps took him to the table, standing in front of the cake, the candle about to-

“No!”

Fuck, he couldn’t do it – he couldn’t fucking kill him. The fucking asshole. What the fuck had Clancy done to him?

Why did he feel so weak? So pathetic? So utterly in… love.

“What, Lucas?” Clancy asked, the candle now at a safer distance. “This is the last bit.”

He felt broken, he felt confused, he felt alive.

Lucase felt. “Don’t…”

“Come on, Lucas. I’ve finished you game.” Clancy rotated the candle between his fingers, the thing that was going to change everything. He just needed more time to think.

“Clancy, don’t you dare.”

“What? Because then I don’t finish your game?”

No-

“Then you won’t let me leave?”

Why did Clancy want to leave him?

Head shaking from side to side, Clancy was ready to use the candle once more.

Fuck, just more time, he couldn’t let him do this.

Just more time.

Throwing the headphones down, Lucas ran to the door that separated him from Clancy. His hand was too sweaty, fumbling at the lock, knowing it was almost too late. Punching the door out of frustration, he broke through material, it didn’t matter right now.

Fingers caught on the latch and Lucas swung open – Clancy hadn’t put the candle on yet, but it was inches away and was he staring at him.

Marching towards the other, Lucas watched how Clancy was stepping backwards until he was physically stopped from the wall, how his eyes were wide.

Fuck, he feared him, it didn’t matter right now.

Lucas snatched the candle away, his eyes meeting with Clancy.

He wanted to shout at the other, tell him he was an idiot, that he didn’t matter.

But he couldn’t do it, Clancy wasn’t an idiot, and he mattered.

Clanct mattered so much.

Instead he resorted to what he did best - performance.

Blowing out the candle, Lucas let his arms come wide, fake smiling at the other who almost looked confused, blinking at him.

“Congratulations, you won! First one to do so, you should feel proud,” it was all Lucas could say.

“You’ll let me go.”                                                           

Fuck.

He needed more time to think, more time to let himself think this through and not have Clancy running about. To not have any other distractions.

Grabbing the other’s hand, Lucas pulled Clancy to the open door, hoping he hadn’t made the wrong decision.


End file.
